Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
|image=Gundam_Wing_Poster.jpg; Poster Gundam Wing logo.png; English Logo Logo_New_Mobile_Report_Gundam_Wing.jpg; Japanese Logo Logo_Gundam_Wing.jpg; Japanese Logo 2 |english=Mobile Suit Gundam Wing |kanji=新機動戦記ガンダム Ｗ |romaji=Shin Kidō Senki Gandamu Uingu |shortname=Wing |era=After Colony |media=Anime |episodes=49 |japanese start=April 7, 1995 |english start=March 6, 2000 |japanese end=March 29, 1996 |english end=May 11, 2000 |producer=Sunrise |dubbing=The Ocean Group |chardesign=Shukou Murase |mechdesign=Hajime Katoki, Junya Ishigaki, Kunio Okawara |artdirector=Masaru Sato, Yusuke Takeda |storyscript=Katsuyuki Sumizawa |director=Masashi Ikeda, Shinji Takamatsu |music=Kō Ōtani }} is a 1995 anime television series created by Sunrise. It began broadcast in Japan on April 7, 1995 with the original English-language run of the series beginning on March 6, 2000 on the popular Cartoon Network's Toonami programming block in the United States; becoming the first Gundam series to be broadcast on American television. The successor to Mobile Fighter G Gundam, this series combined bishounen character design with more traditional real robot anime to great popularity. Synopsis The story of Gundam Wing begins in the year After Colony 195, with the start of Operation Meteor; five disgruntled scientists' plan for revenge against the tyrannical OZ military organization for their oppression over the space colonies. The operation involves five young boys who have each been chosen and trained by one of the five rogue scientists, then sent to Earth independently in extremely advanced Mobile Suits, one designed by each of the scientists, known as "Gundams". Their mobile suits are called Gundams because they are constructed from a rare and astonishingly durable material known as Gundanium Alloy, which can only be created in outer space. The five Gundam Pilots — Heero Yuy (pilot of the titular Wing Gundam), Duo Maxwell (pilot of the Deathscythe), Trowa Barton (pilot of the Heavyarms), Quatre Raberba Winner (pilot of the Sandrock), and Chang Wufei (pilot of the Shenlong) — originally have no knowledge of each others' existence. On first meeting any of the other five, each pilot believes the others to be enemy pilots in new OZ mobile suit designs. Once the young pilots realize that they have the same objective of destroying OZ (and in some cases the same mission), they band together to help each other complete their goals. Episodes Characters Gundam Pilots *Heero Yuy: Hikaru Midorikawa (Japanese), Mark Hildreth (English) *Duo Maxwell: Toshihiko Seki (Japanese), Scott McNeil (English) *Trowa Barton: Shigeru Nakahara (Japanese), Kirby Morrow (English) *Quatre Raberba Winner: Ai Orikasa (Japanese), Brad Swaile (English) *Chang Wufei: Ryuzou Ishino (Japanese), Ted Cole (English) Gundam Supporters *Relena Darlian: Akiko Yajima (Japanese), Lisa Ann Beley (English) *Lucrezia Noin: Chisa Yokoyama (Japanese), Saffron Henderson (English) *Sally Po: Yumi Touma (Japanese), Moneca Stori, Samantha Ferris (English) *Catherine Bloom: Saori Suzuki (Japanese), Moneca Stori, Cathy Weseluck (English) *Hilde Schbeiker: Kae Araki (Japanese), Marcy Goldberg (English) *Rashid Kurama: Kazuhiro Nakata (Japanese), Michael Dobson (English) *Mike Howard: Hiroshi Ishida (Japanese), Ward Perry (English) OZ *Treize Khushrenada: Ryoutarou Okiayu (Japanese), David Kaye (English) *Zechs Merquise: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English) *Lady Une: Sayuri Yamauchi (Japanese), Enuka Okuma (English) Romerfeller Foundation *Dermail Catalonia: Osamu Kato (Japanese), Jim Byrnes (English) *Dorothy Catalonia: Naoko Matsui (Japanese), Cathy Weseluck (English) *Tubarov: Yuji Mikimoto (Japanese), Richard Newman (English) Alliance *Field Marshal Noventa: Keiji Fujiwara (Japanese), Paul Dobson (English) Civilians *Heero Yuy (politician) *Vice-Minister Darlian: Akio Ohtsuka (Japanese), Michael Dobson (English) White Fang *Quinze Quarante: Osamu Ichikawa (Japanese), David Mackay (English) *Sedici Gundam Scientists *Doctor J: Minoru Inaba (Japanese), Dave Ward (English) *Professor G: Yuzuru Fujimoto (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English) *Doktor S: Shinya Ootaki (Japanese), David Mackay (English) *Instructor H: Takashi Taguchi (Japanese) *Master O: Masashi Hirose (Japanese) Mobile Suits *After Colony Mobile Suits Media Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, known in Japan as ,The translation ''New Mobile Report Gundam Wing is used by the R2 DVD releases in Japan, and thus is used extensively by the English-language fanbase in order to differentiate it from the Universal Century Gundam series. While the use of the term "report" in the title is not necessarily incorrect, it does not convey the full meaning of the original-language terminology. The Japanese word senki (戦記) has a specific meaning of "military history." Some official translations in the past have used the translation New Mobile War Chronicle Gundam Wing as well, and some of the official art uses The New Mobile History Gundam Wing, and at least one Japanese book has used Mobile Suit Gundam Wing. is the seventh Gundam TV anime series, and is one of the alternate universe Gundam series, taking place in the After Colony timeline. It is the second alternate universe in the Gundam media franchise, following Mobile Fighter G Gundam. The plot centers around a war between Earth and its colonies in space; however, in contrast to the Universal Century continuity, the Gundams in Wing are more closely allied to each other than they are to any particular side in the conflict unfolding around them. The series was aired across Japan on the anime satellite television network, Animax, and the terrestrial TV Asahi network. It ran for forty-nine half-hour episodes, beginning on April 7, 1995 and ending on March 29, 1996. Directed by Masashi Ikeda and written by Katsuyuki Sumizawa (Yoroiden Samurai Troopers) with music by Kō Ōtani, the series was loosely based on the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam series, created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yatate. In the U.S., Gundam Wing had a successful run on Cartoon Network's action cartoon/anime block, Toonami; premiering on March 6, 2000 and airing new episodes every weekday afternoon through May 11. The English dub of the series was produced by Ocean Studios (also known as The Ocean Group), which would go on to dub the original Mobile Suit Gundam series and several others in the franchise. Gundam Wing was aired in two formats on Cartoon Network; an edited version shown in the daytime and an uncut version shown after midnight. Examples of the edits included the removal of bloodshed, obscene language, and the word "kill" being replaced by the word "destroy". (This was extended to Duo's nickname, "The God of Death", being changed to "The Great Destroyer"; forcing the alteration of two episode titles.) The broadcast shown at midnight was completely unedited; a first for Cartoon Network, which at the time had never shown an unedited anime. Due to the popularity of the series, a three-part OVA, Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, was produced in 1997 as a sequel to the TV series. One of the most notable aspects of the OVA was the massive redesigns each of the Gundams received (such as the Wing Zero's "angel-winged" appearance), courtesy of Hajime Katoki. In 1998, a compilation movie version of Endless Waltz was released; with additional footage, an altered soundtrack and a different ending theme ("Last Impression"). Endless Waltz aired on Cartoon Network on November 10, 2000. Manga sidestories have also been produced. A prequel, detailing the events leading up to the launch of the Gundams to Earth, is Episode Zero. Several sequel manga, occurring between Gundam Wing and Endless Waltz have been written; titled Blind Target, Ground Zero and Battlefield of Pacifists. A coincidental storyline is presented in Last Outpost (G-Unit). The Gundam Wing, Battlefield of Pacifists and Endless Waltz manga series were published in English by TOKYOPOP, while Blind Target, Ground Zero and Episode Zero were published by Viz Communications. Another sequel manga detailing the future of the colonies, Tiel's Impulse, was also printed, but not in English. In 2010, as part of the 15th anniversary of Gundam Wing in Japan, a new sequel photo novel titled Frozen Teardrop began publication; along with a stylized manga re-telling of the Gundam Wing series titled Glory of the Losers (with Vertical Comics publishing an English release beginning in 2017). In 1996, a video game titled Gundam Wing: Endless Duel was released for the Super Famicom in Japan. The game was never released in the United States or Europe, but has gained some popularity through the emulation of older video games. Since then, Gundam Wing had appeared in several entries of the Super Robot Wars series, its number of appearances are second only to the Universal Century. Gundam Wing also appeared in all of the titles of the Another Century's Episode series. In the U.S., Gundam Wing characters and mecha have been featured in games such as the Gundam Battle Assault series and the Dynasty Warriors Gundam series. Like most works of the franchise, Gundam Wing has also appeared in the SD Gundam sub-franchise. It was the main focus for Musha Senki and the basis for Superior Defender Gundam Force's interpretation of Lacroa, established hub of the Knight Gundam series. Music : ;Openings *''Just Communication'' by Two-Mix (ep. 1-40) (YTV Broadcast: 1-49) *''Rhythm Emotion'' by Two-Mix (ep. 41-49) : ;Ending *''It's Just Love!'' by Rumi Onishi (ep. 1-49) *''Just Communication'' (Instrumental Version) by Kō Ōtani (Toonami Broadcast, ep. 1-49; the credits aired over an amended version of the show's first opening) : ;Insert songs *''Just Communication'' by Two-Mix (eps. 3 & 49) *''Rhythm Emotion'' by Two-Mix (eps. 36, 38, 39, and 41) ''Gundam Wing Operation Meteor I & II: Odds & Evens'' Set chronologically between the ending of the Gundam Wing series and before Endless Waltz, these OVAs released in 1996, feature a series of clips, one from each Gundam pilot's point of view, as well as a beginning and ending. The clips give a glimpse into what happened to all five characters in the direct aftermath of the events in the television series. While these OVAs never received an English dub, they were released in the U.S. as part of Right Stuf's 2017 DVD/Blu-ray collector's box set of Gundam Wing. Trivia * In Episode 3, "Five Gundams Confirmed", when they are showing the computer statistics of Heero's body the text on top of the screen is actually the installation instructions and requirements for "TWAIN Adobe Photoshop". * In episode 8, "The Treize Assassination", when Heero is disarming the bombs, the panel he is accessing says "Intel Outside". * Many of the characters are named after numerals, particularly French numbers, some of them misspelled: Heero "Yuy" = Lone (Japanese 唯 Yui); "Odin" Lowe = One (Russian один); Lady "Une" = One (French, with pronunciation approximating male form Un); "Duo" Maxwell = Two (with approximately French pronunciation); "Trowa" Barton = Three (French Trois); "Quatre" Raberba Winner = Four (French); "Wu" Fei = Five (Mandarin Chinese 五 Wǔ); "Zechs" Merquise = Six (German Sechs); General "Septum" = Seven (Latin Septem); Lucrezia "Noin" = Nine (German Neun); "Dekim" Barton = Ten (Latin Decem, or rather Latin Decimus - Tenth - minus the -us); "Treize" Khushrenada = Thirteen (French); "Quinze" "Quarante" = Fifteen (French) Forty (French); "Seis" Clark = Sixteen (French Seize); "Trant" Clark = Thirty (French Trente); Field Marshal "Noventa" = Ninety (Spanish and other Iberian languages); "Milliardo" Peacecraft = Milliard (short scale billion). * An alternate ending was animated in which Relena reads Heero's letter before calling out to him and tearing it up; screencaps of it can be found floating around the Net. * Several references to the Universal Century were hidden in Gundam Wing as "Easter eggs". In one scene, Wing's monitor reads "Charging M-Particles" (a reference to the mega-particles that make up the beam rifle blasts in the Universal Century). Later, when Quatre looks over Sandrock's blueprints, the Gundam is said to possess a Movable Flame (sic), Gundarium Theta, and ALICE Mk-II (a reference to the photonovel Gundam Sentinel). * The name OZ stands for "Organization of Zodiac"; this is further evidence by the naming scheme of their weapons: Leo, Aries, Cancer, Pisces, Taurus, Virgo and Libra. The ground-use Tragos stands in for Capricorn ("tragos" is Greek for goat). Subsequent manga stories introduce the Gundam Geminass (Gemini), Hydra and Scorpio, and the G-Generation series of video games introduced the Gundam Aquarius. * In the original draft, episodes 27 and 28 would have been flashbacks, revealing important moments from the Gundam pilots' and Relena's pasts. Unfortunately, scheduling conflicts arose which lead to head writer Katsuyuki Sumisawa quitting the series. The episodes were turned into recap episodes, and the backstories were archived in the manga Episode Zero. * Scott McNeil thought of the time his wife accidentally ran over his motorcycle to get himself in the proper frame of mind for Duo's infamous scream in the English dub of episode 20, When Duo witnesses the destruction of XXXG-01D Gundam Deathscythe. ** He uses a very similar scream in Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3 whenever he is shot down in battle. *''Mobile Suit Gundam Wing'' won the second place in Animage's Anime Grand Prix Award in 1995, inferior only to its rival, Neon Genesis Evangelion. In the same year, Duo Maxwell was selected as the favorite male anime character of the year. * An ad for Gundam Wing when it was on Toonami aired a few words from a John F. Kennedy speech; "The torch has been passed to a new generation". From his famous speech "Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans--" etc. Gallery Wing 1.jpg Wing 2.jpg Wing 3.jpg Wing 4.jpg Wing 5.jpg Wing 6.jpg Wing 7.jpg Wing 8.jpg Operation Meteor I Odd Numbers.jpg GW Operation Meteor I Odd Numbers.jpg Operation Meteor II Odd Numbers.jpg Operation Meteor II Even Numbers.jpg New_Mobile_Report_Gundam_Wing_samplec3.jpg Gundam Wing Evens Poster.jpg Gundam Wing ODD Poster.jpg External links *Gundam Wing on Wikipedia (English) *Gundam Wing Official Series Site (Japanese) *http://aboutgundamwing.com/ovas.htm References ja:新機動戦記ガンダムW de:Mobile Suit Gundam Wing